Philippine Stock Exchange reopens trading floor

MANILA, Jun 1, 2020, The Manila Times. The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) is set to reopen its trading floor today (Monday), following the transition of Metro Manila from modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) to general community quarantine, The Manila Times reported.

“While our floorless or offsite trading from March 19 to May 29 has proven to be efficient and seamless, we decided to reopen and resume trading on the floor to convey a strong message to the investing public that things are back to ‘normal’ in the capital markets,” PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Monzon said in a statement.

Monzon added he hopes that the optics of reopening the trading floor would help restore the public’s confidence needed in the recovery of the economy.

The floor serves as the trading hub of more than 60 percent of stock brokerage firms and has been closed since the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in mid-March.

“The brokers who were vacated from the trading floor upon the imposition of ECQ in Metro Manila by IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases) had to look for alternative sites where they could transfer their trading operations. This caused them to incur additional expenses for rental, employee board and lodging and connectivity costs. With the reopening of the trading floor, the brokers would finally be spared from these incremental and substantial expenses,” Monzon explained.

The PSE assured it would strictly observe health and safety guidelines in the workplace prescribed by the IATF, and the Departments of Health, and Labor and Employment.

Aside from providing hand sanitizers and diligently disinfecting, the PSE would also do regular temperature checks on traders prior to their entry and midway through the trading session.

Traders would also be required to submit daily health declarations before entering.

Moreover, only one trader per booth would be allowed to ensure compliance with social distancing protocols.

All those in the trading floor would also be required to wear masks all the time and no congregation in any area within the floor will be allowed.

“The above measures may be inconvenient and troublesome, but we trust the traders will understand and appreciate that all these are being done to safeguard their health and well-being,” Monzon said.

Meanwhile, the PSE would still follow shortened trading hours from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. until further notice.

“Trading hours may remain abbreviated but the PSE will do what it can as a stock market operator to support initiatives towards the country’s economic recovery,” Monzon assured.